Did one or a few rocks floating in space, better known as ASTEROIDS cause the extinction of Earth’s first owners?
|
by Joseph Bolden Even if this didn’t happen, shouldn’t we earthlings have ways of avoiding this ever-looming threat? As I wrote before, there are some ideas that may help prevent asteroids from zipping into our atmosphere and crash landing on our planet. Avoiding this threat is vital because it ensures our species’ survival. I truly believe God in Her/His wisdom endowed us with enough intelligence to protect ourselves from immediate extinction, although the Honorable Reverend Pat Robertson thought it stupid to send nuclear missiles to blast a hurtling meteor heading toward earth. Earthlings, groundhogs, planet-bound, that’s us. Some attempts at long-term survival have proved effective, especially the joint ventures in space, from asteroid mining to zero gravity nurseries. By exploring the dangers of space, our curiosity will be fueled and we will see that there is land floating around us and room to live, grow, and expand. Mining and living on or in asteroids can be what first gets us into space. As for those dangerous slow or fast-moving asteroids, they’ll be mined for mineral or hollowed out for permanent or temporary living quarters. Some will be way stations or beacons with guiding fluorescent lights. We will find out which ones are valuable, mine them for excess minerals and energy, while huge so-called worthless ones can be hollowed out for homes, rest stations, libraries, schools, hotels, gambling casinos, resorts, or factories, or just used for pure research and development centers. Nations, multinational corporations, and individuals in clubs or other organizations can make space living commercially viable. With government and civilian work-training programs for the working poor, homeless people and others would be able to venture into new frontiers. It could be an intensive 12-month to 2-year program, depending on the rate at which each student- worker progressed in learning a new skill or task. Students would be matched with companies depending on which skills and psychological profiles worked best for both the students and the companies. Folks would learn how to mine asteroids, pilot shuttles, or be mission specialists. There will be fun times. When work’s done or an hour or two before that time, people who are bored with drilling or chipping ore will play leapfrog on the asteroids. Pioneering space is a hazardous business where one error cannot only cost your own life but many others’, too. Besides risks like loss of bone density, there are benefits: slower aging, being away from the dangers on Earth, getting to visit Earth, and living in new space habitats. For the brave few who attempt space living before it becomes routine, fame and fortune and possibly even an animated cartoon tie-in may be one of the rewards . For formerly homeless, working poor and adventurous people, being trained and paid for this enduring unique program will be the chance of a lifetime. Pay could be from $30,000 to $50,000 annually, and would be saved on Earth or on a hollowed out planetoid and invested for the space workers quarterly, with monthly or annual tax/dividend updates. Some will want to stay in space to raise families, some won’t. After intense training, hands-on instruction, and evaluations, some students will find they have innate skills. Then the true adventure of working and living in space will begin! We as a species do take risks, and surviving or dying in our pursuits will always better our "questing" spirits, minds, and souls. Space: enchanting, vast, silent, ancient, new, romantic, mysterious, tempting, always dangerous, a deadly beauty, but our human dream. I’ll do the donation drag again hoping that Poor Magazine, it's staff writers, including myself, get some kind of funding. If not, I’ll keep writing though, because I know people young and mature have similar thoughts to mine. Questions, opinions, here it comes. If I cannot be a spacer in this timeline-uh, lifetime, I’m going to have to put my hopes in life extension, cryobiology, hibernation, or suspended animation to get me there. Please send donations to Poor Magazine For Joe only my snail mail: |